New Zealand Junior Davis Cup Team Finishes 10th at Asia/Oceania Tournament

New Zealand’s junior boys national tennis team have wrapped up their tournament in Kazakhstan, finishing 10th at the Junior Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Final Qualifying event.

The team, made up of (from left to right in above image) Clint Packer (coach), Liam Youn (Northern), Luca Bland (Auckland), Alvin Na (Canterbury), with non-travelling reserve Max Flanagan (Auckland) (not pictured).

Competing in Shymkent, the team recorded wins over Iran, Jordan, and India. 

In the group stage, the boys lost to China PR and Kazakhstan but secured third place in their group with a 3-0 win over Iran. Luca Bland had two singles victories in straight sets, against Iran and Jordan. He teamed up with Liam Youn to take out the doubles and secure the tie against Iran.

In the 9th-16th place playoffs, New Zealand made a strong start by defeating Jordan 2-1, with Alvin Na winning his singles match in two hard-fought tiebreak sets.

They then edged past India 2-1, with Na again winning his singles match and later teaming up with Luca Bland in the doubles. The pair sealed the tie with a thrilling 11-9 final set tiebreak victory.

The team concluded their campaign with a loss to Thailand, finishing the tournament in 10th place.

The top four teams who have qualified for the next stage in the Junior Davis Cup were Japan, Korea Republic, China, P.R, and Chinese Taipei.